Driving connection for motor-driven fans.



C. AALBORG. DRIVING CONNECTION FOR MOTOR DRIVEN FANSP APPLICATION FILED FEB. 1. 1912.

Patented Apr; 10, 1917.

,. INVENTOR ATTORNEY outrun snares rnirnrvr curios.

CHRISTLAN AALBOBG, 0F WILKINSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNDR T0 WESTING- HOUSE ELECTRIC AND MANUFACTURING COMPANY,

SYLVANIA.

. Application filed February 1, 1912.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known thatl, CrinisTIAN AALnoRo, a citizen of the United States, and a resident ofdi 'ilkinsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have ,in-

vented a new and useful Improvement in.

I that shall be simple and durable in construction and shall embody .a yielding safety device or (:l-riving connection in its oscillating mechanism, whereby lost motion or slippage is permitted between members of said mechanism in case the oscillatory movement of the fan is restrained or prevented by accidental contact with an exterior object.

Another ob ect 'of my invention is to provide effective and ready means for rendering the oscillating mechanism inoperative, in order that the fan may be adjusted to deliver air steadily in any desired direction.

In the accompanying drawing, Figure l. is a view, partially in side elevation and partially in section, of a motor driven fan embodying my invention. Fig. is a plan View, partially in section, of a portion of the oscillating mechanism shown in Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a portion of the oscillating mechanism, showing the relative positions of the parts of the driving connection when said connection is rendered inoperative.

Referring to the drawing, a motor 1 of any suitable construction is adapted for rotational m'onement upon a standard or base 2 that may be adjusted in position for either desk or wall mounting through the gagency of an adjustable coupling or hinge 3.

The motor 1 is provided with an arinature shaft 4, one end of which carries a plurality of fan blades 5 that are inclosedn'ithin a Wire guard or cage 6, while the other end thereof is provided with a worm 7 that cooperatively engages a worm wheel 8. The Worm Wheel 8 is loosely fitted upon an aux- Specification of Letters Patent.

A CORPORATION or reun- DRIVING CONNECTION FOB MOTOR-DRIVEN FALNS.

Serial No. 674,801.

iliary shaft 9 that is suitably journaled in Patented Apr. it), lull? a casing 10 which serves to inclose the various parts of the oscillating mechanism. Intcgrally associated with, or otherwise suit ably secured to, the worm wheel 8, is a tubular member 11 having corresponding side recesses 12 therein and, loosely fitted Within .said tubular member 11, is a cylindrical member 13 that is fixed to the auxiliary shaft 9 and is provided with a transverse opening 14. -Balls 15 are disposed at the respective ends of said opening 1.4, and a spring 16 is interposed between them for the purpose of forcing said balls outwardly and normally maintaining the same in cooperative relation with the side recesses 12, whereby a yielding driving connection is provided between the worm wheel 8 and the cylindrical member 13. A cap member 17 serves to close an opening in the upper portion of the casing 10. and a rod or stem 18, 7

that secured to the cylindrical member 13, projects therethrough and is provided with button or handle 19. The cap 17 is furthermore provided with an annular recess 20. for a purpose to be hereinafter set forth.

A. pinion 21 is carried on the lower end of the auxiliary shaft 9- and is adapted to mesh. with a gear member 22 to which one end of a connecting rod 23 is eccentric-ally and pivotally connected by a pin 24, the other end of said connecting rod being suitably associated with a. portion of the supporting base 2.

Assuming the various parts of the apparatus to occupy the positions shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and the motor 1 tobe operating at its normal speed, it is evident that the rotational movement of the armature shaft 4 9 is transmitted to the gear member 22 ata-- reduced speed, through the agency of the oscillating mechanism, and the yielding dri ing connection hereinoefore described. An oscillatory movement is. therefore, imparted to the fan motor 1. as a unitary structure, by reason of the eccentric connection between the connecting rod 2?, and the rotating gear member- 22. in a manner that is well known in the art.

In case the oscillatory movement of the fan is restrained by accidental contact with an exterior object or by any other means, the balls 15 are forced inwardly against the action of the spring 16 and a slippage or lost motion is thus permitted between the gear member 8 and the cylindrical member '13. Thus, the fan continues to operate steadily in a fixed direction until the restraining means is removed. During this operation, the worm wheel 8 continues to 1'0- tate at normal speed, but its movement is not transmitted to the auxiliary shaft 9 through the driving connect-ion already set forth bemuse the spring 16 permits the balls 15 to be forced out of the side recesses 12, as will be readily understood. When the obstructing object is removed, the oscillatory movement of the fan is resumed, the balls 15 being then,

maintained in cooperative engagement with the side recesses 12 to etiect'an operative driving connection. 4

In case it is desired to operate the fan in a sin gle position, the cylindrical member 13 an the sprin and balls associated therewitl'r may be wit idrawn, as a unit, from the tubular ortion 11 of the worm wheel 8, by the ban e 19, as shown in Fig. The driving connection is thus rendere l inoperative, and is maintained in this condition inasmuch as the balls 15 are forced outwardly into the annular groove 20 in the cap member 17 to hold the member 13 in its upper position.

Moreover, inasmuch as pinion 21 is not into disengaged from gear 22 when the riving' connection is broken, the fan is held substantially free from drifting or movement, by reason of the frictional engagement of member 13 and cap member 17.

When the handle 19 is depressed, the balls 15 are again seated in the side recesses 12 by the spring 16 to yieldingly lock the members 8 and 13 together, whereby, the normal oscillatory movement of the device is resumed. I

Although I hav shown and described an oscillating mechanism of particular structural details, said mechanism forms no part of my present invention except as it serves to complete an operative combination of elements, and any other suitable oscillating mechanism may be employed. Furthermore, the structure and arrangen'lent and location of parts of the yielding driving connection,

hereinbe'forc set forth in detail, may be varied consideahly and used for other purposes without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

I claim as my invention:

1. A driving connection comprising a shaft provided with a gear member secured to one end thereof, a second gear member loosely surrounding the other end of said shaft and provided with a tubular extension, a sleeve secured to said shaft and located within said extension, the said sleeve being provided with a transverse opening; and the said extension being provided with corresponding side recesses and two balls and an interposed spring located in said to opening, said halls being normally held in said side recesses.

2. A driving connection con1prisin; a longitudinally movable shaft provided with ii gear member secured to one end thereof, a

second gear member loosely surrounding the other end of said shaft and provided with a tubular extension, a sleeve secured to said shaft and located within said extension, the

said sleeve being provided with a transverse opening and the said extension being provided wlth corresponding side recesses, other corresponding: side recesses located ad acent to sleeve, two balls and an interposed spring I located in said opening, said balls being normally held in said side recesses, and a handle for withdrawing said sleeve from said extension to cause engagement of said balls with said second named recesses.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto sub- 

